Chapter 17: Agreement

The moment their lunch spread of sandwiches, cut fruit, salad, and tea is laid out on the coffee table and the staff delivering it leave, Aesind locks the door and throws himself into one of the plush chairs. Emrys watches him, amused and expectant. If he wants to stall, so be it.

Aesind fusses about with the arrangement of foods, filling a small plate for himself and for Emrys. He even pours Emrys a steaming cup of fragrant black tea. Aesind pours himself a cup and promptly burns his tongue on it while Emrys takes the chair directly across from him.

"Ah, fuck," Aesind hisses, fanning his open mouth. "Shit, that's hot."

Emrys makes no moves on the food or drink. He leans back into his chair, crossing his arms. Eventually, Aesind runs out of things to occupy his attention. All that's left is Emrys's direct gaze.

"So?" Emrys prompts as Aesind settles.

Aesind sighs. He sets his too-hot cup on the table between them. His hands dangle between his knees as he leans forward, laced together loosely. An air of seriousness descends on him, so unlike the sparkling creature Emrys held in his arms not long ago.

"Archimedes and I deal with a lot of rumor-mongering," Aesind says after a long silence. "There are people who would like to control Archimedes's life and who disdain me for preventing their success in doing so."

Emrys nods slowly. "Suitors and their sponsors."

"It's more than just them, though they are the most annoying at present." He sighs again, rubbing at his eyes with forefinger and thumb. "There are more complex machinations at work all the time."

Aesind affixes Emrys with a solemn frown. "The Golden Valley is a critical part of the region, as you well know. We've been under attack by these ghouls for far too long, and now other nearby territories are, as well. Things are rapidly getting worse. It's made people nervous."

"I'm aware," Emrys says, brow furrowing. "What does that have to do with those suitors thinking I'm here to court you?"

"Archimedes has no heir."

"... And?"

"And," Aesind says with a frustrated groan, "if he dies in defense of the Valley, it'll cause an uproar. His cousins will vie for control of the region and fail, leaving the rest of the nobles to fight over who gets what pieces. Archimedes needs another mate, sooner rather than later."

"They ought to send their best, then," Emrys says flatly.

"Yes, they should. And in a way, they are." Aesind's frown twists to the side. "It's as though they're purposely testing our patience as a coordinated effort. Many parties working together to do... something to us in order to control Archimedes's future."

Emrys straightens as concern jolts through his chest. "Do what? And why?"

"We don't really know. But we do know that the more suspicious suitors are threatened by your presence." He points a finger at Emrys. "You're intelligent, friendly, good-looking, and from a respectable family. Plus, it's become rather common knowledge that we've gotten quite close. The assumption is that you and I are growing romantically attached, and these suitors don't know what to do about it. It makes sense from a normal, logical suitor's standpoint, but some of them are particularly rotten about it. You clearly don't fit into their existing orders, whatever those may be."

Emrys fights off the pleasant rush of heat in his face at the compliments Aesind has paid him. He forces himself to focus on the issue at hand. "And so they're nervous. Aggressive, wary."

"Exactly. Their motives are becoming more obvious the more thrown they are." Aesind gestures with one hand toward the door. "Take Mister Rischer, for example. You know he's a decorated military mage from the Verdant Isle. Nothing should rattle him or cause him to lose his head, least of all a bit of perceived competition. And yet, he attacked you today. Why do you suppose that is?"

Emrys scratches at his cheek. "Could be a few reasons. To test my mettle, possibly."

"Or to test mine."

"Maybe," Emrys grunts, shifting in his chair. "But a guy like that wouldn't make a risky move just to make it."

"No," Aesind agrees with a nod. "I believe he's been receiving updated orders while he's been here. His behavior has changed considerably in the last two days alone."

"I'm not sure how much you heard, but he told me he was approaching me on behalf of all the present suitors." Emrys frowns. "He's not the only one, either. Mister Reeves did something similar just the other day."

Aesind's eyes sharpen. "Did he? What did he say?"

"About what Rischer did, but with more tact. And without the implication that he was doing it on behalf of everyone else."

"And nothing more?"

"No. Why?"

"He and the others have been..." Aesind's mouth twists to the side. "They've been sour about me spending time with you while they're here. It's why I've made so many extra meetings with Reeves, so that he would leave you alone."

Warmth squeezes in Emrys's chest. "You didn't have to do that."

"Perhaps not," Aesind says with a tiny smile. It falls after a second with an equally tiny shrug. "I don't like that they're coordinating against you. It confirms that they're getting instructions from the same sources, even if we don't know why they're complying."

"Who?"

Another shrug. Aesind glances away.

"Alright," Emrys says slowly. He rubs at his chin. "The suitors have been annoyed about me, then. Yet Mister Keyes wasn't upset to find us together in the ballroom." He glances at Aesind, thinking hard. There has to be a common thread. "Where is he from?"

"Sky Threshold. He's the firstborn son of a noble family whose lineage is traced back to the founding of the territory." Anticipating the next question, Aesind says, "Rischer is the third and only unmarried son of Captain Louis Rischer of the Undaunted Spirit. He's received half a dozen honors for valor and bravery in battle, primarily at sea, like his father."

"Undaunted Spirit... Wasn't that captain disgraced a few years back?" Emrys asks. He casts his mind back, trying to remember the details overheard during his mother's conversations about it with the guild. "Something about cheating on his wife?"

"Yes and no. The accusers all retracted their statements, and the supposed mistress disappeared. The assumption is that she vanished out of shame." Aesind leans back in his chair, one foot propped up on the opposite knee. "But she was noble herself, not to mention sole heiress to a wealthy shipping business. For her to disappear like that is shocking, to say the least."

"Do all the ruder suitors have that in common?" Emrys asks as a theory coalesces in his mind. He cants forward, elbows on knees. "Scandals, rumors, familial issues, money problems, that sort of thing. Things that can be exploited."

"Many of them, yes. Not all, of course, but in my digging, I've found that a lot of them do have dubious backgrounds."

"Why would these sponsors send men like that?" Emrys mutters. He scans the lunch in front of them. It all looks delicious, but he's far from hungry. "You'd think it'd ruin their reputation to do it. It's a big risk, even with bribery or threats in the mix. Would what they'd get outweigh that? And what about whoever's behind it, what do they gain from this scheme?"

"I don't think it's about gaining anything," Aesind says quietly. A line appears between his expressive brows as Emrys glances back up at him. "I think it's about making a point."

"What point?"

Aesind just shakes his head, eyes dropping to the table.

"Does this have anything to do with Reeves being a problem?" Emrys asks next, watching carefully for the response. "He's obviously part of it, with how he spoke to me, but is there more to him being here than that?"

"There may be." Aesind's lips part to say more, but he just sighs and shakes his head again. "Maybe."

So, the true answer is yes, and he can't say more about it, Emrys concludes to himself. Aesind's reluctance speaks volumes. Like Emrys told Ash days ago, Aesind's safety is his priority. It doesn't matter what his feelings are or how curious he is about the background information being hidden here. What matters is giving Aesind the resources he needs to make himself safe. He can press it later.

"Alright," Emrys says, straightening once more. "What can I do to help?"

Green eyes flash upwards. "You want to help?"

"Of course, I do. You're my friend." Emrys cracks a little smile. "Besides, I don't think you would've confided in me if you didn't want my help."

"That's fair," Aesind says, and it's almost a laugh. He draws in a short breath, then hesitates. He seems to shrink in on himself slightly. "I... I do want your help, and I've got something of an idea. Though I'm not sure it's a good one."

"Tell me, and we'll decide that together. If it's really that bad, I'll say no, and we can think of something else."

Aesind meets Emrys's eyes again. His own shine with a soft gratitude that turns Emrys's insides to mush.

"You really are wonderful," Aesind whispers. He clears his throat and shakes himself, apparently not realizing what his quiet compliment has done to Emrys's brain (exploded). With more confidence he says, "Alright. Whoever's pulling the strings is doing so because I'm picky. They know that even an alright suitor won't be enough to catch my attention, and they know that the particularly bad ones are giving us all gray hair. They worry about you now, even though it's known that you aren't here to court us, because both Archimedes and I enjoy your company." Aesind offers a proud smirk. "They're already betraying themselves out of panic. I suspect that if you were courting us, they'd be even worse at hiding their intentions. Perhaps they'd even reveal the whole plot if pressed enough."

"But I'm not," Emrys says. Heat creeps over his ears, burning bright.

"No," Aesind says with a secretive grin. "But what if it appeared that way?" He scoots forward in his chair, both feet landing on the ground. "What if it seemed as though you were courting us, and that it was working?"

Brain malfunctioning, Emrys struggles to parse that. He coughs lightly into his fist and says, "I... Well, uh. They'd be forced to..." The pieces click into place. He turns wide eyes onto Aesind, who appears downright delighted. "They'd be forced to send better gentlemen, for one, and stop harassing you with half-assed attempts. For another, they would need to ramp up their plans or give up. And with me on the lookout as well, that's another set of eyes aware of everything that's going on."

"Exactly! It's a win-win. An improved pool of options and a potential end to this entire thing. And it would give me new opportunities to get away from particularly unpleasant ones. You'd have as much right to my time as any of them, or even more, if we play it up well enough." Aesind's smile dims slightly. "Of course, that... that does mean we'd have to... That is, it would have to appear as though we're..." The smile falls entirely when Emrys says nothing immediately. "I don't want to harm our friendship with this. You can say no. If you think it's a bad idea..."

"No," Emrys blurts. Then, when Aesind deflates, he scrambles to amend, "I mean — it's a good idea. If you think that would help, then..." His throat threatens to close. He forces the words past the tightness. "Then I'm in. We already spend plenty of time together. What's a little more?"

He cringes internally at how simultaneously flippant and strangled he sounds. This may be the closest he ever gets to actual courtship with Aesind (or with Archimedes, who is a whole other bag of unwieldy fish). It's pathetic, but maybe it'll be enough to soothe the ache. Besides, he can't leave Aesind behind on this. It's partly his fault that things have gotten worse lately, thanks to the suitors' concerns. It would only be right to do his best to fix the problem.

Plus, the excuse to get even a little closer, even if it's false, is too tempting.

"You're sure?" Aesind asks, searching Emrys's expression. "We can't know what kind of consequences this will have. It may reflect badly on you in the long run."

"What, being considered by you and Archimedes?" Emrys snorts. "Seems like a high honor to me."

A little smile wobbles into place on Aesind's lips. "You're sure?"

"Yeah. I'm sure." Emrys takes a deep, steadying breath. He picks up the plate Aesind filled for him and plucks a juicy strawberry off the top. "Now, let's talk strategy."